


A hard decision for a fragile flower

by AChildOfTheEye



Series: Boss adopts Eugene as a baby [5]
Category: Underworld Office (Visual Novel)
Genre: Family, Gen, i love them, so much, this series is genuinely giving me a lot of happiness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:13:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28359102
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AChildOfTheEye/pseuds/AChildOfTheEye
Summary: Time sure flew by. Lotus is now three, and a decision they'd rather not choose to take so soon.ORBoss is far too attached to Eugene already
Relationships: Eugene & River, River & Boss, eugene & Boss
Series: Boss adopts Eugene as a baby [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2062002
Comments: 14
Kudos: 79





	A hard decision for a fragile flower

Boss couldn't believe how fast time went. He blinked and Lotus was more than a small baby now. They could walk and babble a bit more than they could before. Of course, they seemed to have problems with speaking and balance, but that wasn't a problem. He simply was in disbelief of how much they had grown.

They were still light, but they were bigger. Their hands more steady, their teeth now fully grown, and their eyes having tinted a brown so deep and wondrous that Boss could swear he's never seen that exact shade of brown before. Small specks of gold sprinkled in, and you'd have Lotus' eyes. Their hair darkened slightly, too.

Gone from a baby carrot orange to a tabby cat fur like colour, reaching slightly past their cheeks. Their smile soft and sweet, and their laughs louder, far sweeter. He couldn't describe the amount of parental love he held for them. He's been teaching them some Korean, too. Nothing major for them not to pick up English, but he's been being extravagant in terms of teaching them certain words.

He's held the memory of him teaching them the word 'dad' in Korean. The way they mimicked his pronunciation and mouth movements while settled infront of him and pronounced it with the slight stammer and childlike accent all children have. And it's one of his favourite words now. 아빠.

He's incredibly proud of Lotus for being able to count to 15 in Korean, and count up to 50 in English. They were so smart, but he won't place any sort of expectation on them. They only ever need compliments and encouragements. They deserve them. They've been doing well in daycare in terms of learning from the caretakers there.

He's just so proud of them. He loves them so much, and he's so incredibly proud of them. They're the most precious person in his life, and he's so glad he decided to keep them in his life. He's so happy, and so is Joan and River. Damien left not long after they picked Lotus up permanently. They didn't mind. As long as he was happy and resting.  
Right now, he and River were on their way to Lotus. Their parents had, thankfully, still get them what they needed, but were still awfully neglectful of them, and it always took Boss a lot to keep himself from killing them himself or letting River wrangle them. But he always persisted that ghosts should not interfere with human affairs, even if they were taking care of Lotus.

Speaking of that, their room was quite different from the baby room it once was. There was a small bed, more plushes, the wallpaper had been changed, and there was a dream catcher on the ceiling. Boss never knew where they bought it from, but it looked handmade. Hopefully, the money went somewhere good. Lotus seemed to like it. Whenever Boss would pick them up, they liked reaching for it, trying to say the Korean word for 'dream.'

He often worried that he was making them switch over to Korean, but no, they seemed perfectly capable of speaking English, too. So it wasn't that big of a worry. Plus, hearing Lotus say things in Boss' native tongue stabbed him in the heart many times. In a good way, that is.

"Soooo, do you think they can actually comprehend that we're ghosts?" River asked, smoothly gliding next to Boss, who always chose to walk. "I'm sure they do. I mean, if they do not, they'd have a lot more bruises from trying to walk through walls. Even if they fall enough on their own." Boss explained, gently smacking River when she snickered at that.

"Let's not laugh at them." He stated simply, not being able to help the small smile that tugged at his lips. River just giggled at that, gently floating along with Boss, now laying on her back, as if she was laying in a hammock. She looked comfortable. At least she knew how to have fun, even if her fate wasn't the best.

"I wonder when they'll get sent to kindergarten. I don't remember how it went here." River said, arms behind her head as she looked at Boss. Her hair floating up, making it seem like she's falling.  
Quite a show, if you weren't used to it. Not that Boss would particularly get concerned. He knew River would never let herself fall, even as a ghost. They could float for a reason.

He looked back ahead, blinking before he answered. "I'm rather sure they'll be put into a kindergarten around 4. Or sooner. Who knows with their parents, honestly. Hopefully, they'll at least get them a good kindergarten. Not a bad one. I just hope they'll do okay..." He trailed off, realizing he's been talking far too much. He sighed, shaking his head.

"All that matters is that they progress accordingly and as a child should. I just hope I'm not pulling them back by teaching them some Korean." Boss gave River a look as soon as she burst out laughing at that, slowly spinning upside down as she laughed. 

"Boss," she started, taking a deep breath. "You CANNOT be serious! You're helping the kid along! Helping his little brain work a trainload more and understand more! You're doing them a service rather than a disservice. Anyway, come on!" She stepped back onto her feet before grabbing Boss' arm, pulling him up as they got closer to Lotus' home.

"Their little head, River." Boss reminded, immediately getting her to facepalm. "Right! Sorry. I always forget." She chuckled, shaking her head as they entered the apartment. It was relatively quiet right now. It was rather late, after all.

The parents were watching TV, but the mother was long asleep. They at least won't be in their hair. They didn't say much as they walked to Lotus' room, finding the toddler sitting in their bed, babbling away as they played with their teddy bear. They didn't seem to notice Boss and River immediately, but they did look up as soon as both were in their room and get up, waddling happily over to get picked up.

They let out a happy giggle, clamping onto Boss' clothes as he held them. "Hey, little Lotus. How are you doing, my little flower?" He asked lowly, pressing a small kiss to their forehead.  
That got him a hearty giggle and a wiggle from them. River gently took them from him, fake throwing them up as she did.

"Hello, little flower!" She said, twirling around slightly to make them giggle. "Aren't you giggly today?" She cooed, nuzzling their noses together.

"Alright River, get off the kid. We're only here to play for a bit." Boss said, gently patting her back. That got a whine from her, but she reluctantly handed them back before going over to the toy box.

She sat down infront of it, taking some of Lotus' favourite toys out as Boss sat down a bit after her, gently sitting Lotus down, too.

She rolled a ball towards them, which they took feverishly into their hands, giggling as they grabbed and squished it. Boss made sure they wouldn't fall or tip over, one hand gently holding their jumper as River and Lotus played in relative quiet, past Lotus' fevered giggles.

"What are we gonna do?" River asked out of the blue, making Boss look up at her in surprise.

"What do you mean?" He asked, letting Lotus take his hand and play with it. He wiggled his fingers, making them giggle gleefully. He kept his eyes on River, though. 

"We can't..." She trailed off. She sighed, passing a hand through her hair. "We can't take care of Lotus forever. When do you think it'd be... Good to move on?" She asked, voice meagre and quiet.

Boss looked down at them, Lotus looking back up at him. Bundle of ginger hair, brown eyes flocked with iridescent gold, smile toothy. It hurt to think about.

He looked back up at River, a weight pressing down onto his shoulders. He frowned, his lips pressed together tight. He sighed, looking back down at Lotus. "As soon as they decide to move on. That's when it's time for is to do so, too."

It was decided, then. As soon as they won't see them anymore, that's when it's going to be a painful goodbye. Boss hoped it'd never happen.

He knew it'll happen eventually. They all knew it. It still hurt.

**Author's Note:**

> This sucks, I am SO sorry


End file.
